Originally Posted by MarylandNed (Post 11782376)

It's not impossible. It depends on the car. Some models just need minor modifications before being imported.

Originally Posted by Oakvillian (Post 11782881)

Which is what I said, isn't it? Or did you miss the second part of what I wrote? For a car less than 15 years old, unless it complies with RIV requirements, it cannot be imported. Only cars that were built for the Canadian market, or are substantively identical to those built for the Canadian market, would qualify. Almost by definition, that means that there will be second-hand versions of the same vehicle available in Canada. Which is why I said that you may as well just buy one here.

Can you identify a vehicle, any vehicle, where that's not the case, or were you just being obstreperous?

Originally Posted by withabix (Post 11782357)

Those ones were much newer than they were supposed to be, with chassis and engine numbers from older vehicles.

Because Americans want Minis and Defenders that aren't over a quarter of a century old...

Originally Posted by MarylandNed (Post 11782892)

You're a sensitive soul aren't you?

You said this: "Unless it's more than 15 years old, it's essentially impossible unless it was built (and labelled) to Canadian specifications from new."

I am taking issue with this statement because I believe it to be simply untrue. It is far from being "essentially impossible". For example, many people successfully import cars from the US that were not built to "Canadian specifications". Many of these cars, that were not built for the Canadian market, require minor modifications. You might go on to contradict yourself later but that doesn't make the above statement true.

Originally Posted by MarylandNed (Post 11782892)

many people successfully import cars from the US that were not built to "Canadian specifications".

Originally Posted by dbd33 (Post 11782352)

Honda Civics are, of course, not worth much to anyone anywhere.

Originally Posted by Tweedpipe (Post 11782990)

Mine is! And without doubt one of the most reliable vehicles on the road. (Had Fords, Peugeot, Lotus, MG's, Alfa Romeos, Lotus etc.) This being my fourth Honda, now at 7 years old and 60k klms, looks and performs just like new. Outstanding vehicle, and imho worth it's weight in gold in terms of driving pleasure & trouble-free motoring.

Originally Posted by dbd33 (Post 11782918)

I don't think this is true. Canada does not have vehicle specifications that are different from those pertaining in the US except in matters of miniscule detail (French labels, disabled head lamp switches). Canada does not, for example, require that a model be subjected to a different crash test program than the US does. I think it fair to say that, in every important regard, US and Canadian specifications are the same.

Originally Posted by MarylandNed (Post 11784693)

While some US vehicles require minor modifications before they can be imported into Canada, some modifications can be extensive and expensive. And some US vehicles can't be imported into Canada at all no matter what you do to them.

Originally Posted by dbd33 (Post 11784771)

Which ones?

Originally Posted by MarylandNed (Post 11784926)

I meant there are cars that are being driven legally on US roads that cannot be imported into Canada. FL listed some of them.

Originally Posted by withabix (Post 11782330)

It's not.

The Americans crush things that don't comply, without giving you a chance to apologise and re-export offending vehicle...

Mini:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sWz4nBZVgkc

Defender:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mzBFwFos-o0

Originally Posted by Oakvillian (Post 11781491)

Unless it's more than 15 years old, it's essentially impossible unless it was built (and labelled) to Canadian specifications from new. In which case you might as well buy it here.

Assuming it qualifies, a Land Rover would be a good candidate. If you're bringing it with you, ship it in a container with all your other worldly possessions. If that pushes you to a bigger size of container, the incremental cost will not be as high as the cost of shipping separately.

After that the process of insuring, inspecting and licensing depends on your destination province. I did this in Ontario a few years ago, and this is what I remember...

It'll probably need to be inspected by CFIA on arrival, who will likely find an excuse to require it to be cleaned (at considerable expense). Once you've cleared customs you'll need to arrange insurance (complex but not impossible if you find a helpful broker - I insured mine on its UK plates for getting it from the container yard to my home and thence to the inspection station). If that's not possible you'll need to trailer it to a local inspection garage, to be issued a safety certificate.

This shouldn't be much more than a formality. ALthough, depending on age and nature of the vehicle, it may require some modifications. For a UK vehicle the speedo probably already shows km/h, so that's OK. The lights will need to dip the other way (although my inspector missed that). The requisite number of mirrors and lights must be fitted and working. If the car's old enough to import easily it's old enough to be exempt from emissions testing, so that's one less thing to worry about.

Make sure all the import paperwork is completed accurately. If the car has been in your ownership for a while, you'll need to prove that and have it documented on your goods-to-follow list and vehicle import form, in order ot avoid paying provincial sales tax on the book value of the vehicle. You'll need to then take all the import documentation and proof of insurance to the local Service Ontario office to register it and get your license plates.